Although work has resumed building the “Ocracoke Express” passenger ferry, the N.C. Ferry Division is looking into the possibility of a rental boat for the upcoming visitor season. N.C. Ferry Division spokesman Tim Hass said Friday (March 29) that work stopped on Feb. 19 after a report from Elliott Bay Design Group, Seattle, Wash., who […]
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More Public Restrooms on Tap for Ocracoke this Year
If all goes according to plan, Ocracoke will have several new public restrooms this year on the Island Inn property. The Ocracoke Occupancy Tax Board in December allocated $141,000 from its reserve fund to the Ocracoke Preservation Society, which purchased the Island Inn last year with the intent to preserve it for the community. Ocracoke’s […]
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Volunteers Find Cold-Stunned Turtles on Ocracoke
January 21, 2019 | Island Features | By: Connie Leinbach | From The: Ocracoke Observer
Pat Garber and an assistant gently lifted the Kemps Ridley turtle into the back of a truck for transport to the Sea Turtle Assistance and Rehabilitation (STAR) Center at the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island. The turtle, a critically endangered species, had been stunned by the cold ocean waters and was beached at the […]
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An Ocean Plunge for a New Year on Ocracoke
January 2, 2019 | Ocracoke Island Features | By: Connie Leinbach | From The: Ocracoke Observer
Several first-timers were among about 45 kids and adults of all ages Tuesday afternoon for Ocracoke’s version of the Polar Plunge at the airport beach off Ramp 70. As kids ran around the beach in their bathing suits and swimmers gathered for a group photo, air temperatures in the upper 60s and an ocean temperature […]
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Volunteers Needed to Help Find Cold Stunned Sea Turtles
By CONNIE LEINBACH THE OCRACOKE OBSERVER The Network for Endangered Sea Turtles (NEST) is seeking volunteers interested in helping patrol for and/or transport sea turtles that wash up on the shore during the fall and winter months. NEST will be holding an informational meeting with training 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 17, in the Ocracoke Community […]
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Blackbeard’s Pirate Jamboree Oct. 25 to 28 to Spotlight 300 Years Since Blackbeard’s Demise
By Connie Leinbach The Ocracoke Observer In 300 years since his demise, Blackbeard has become the best-known pirate in history, and the popularity of recent Hollywood movies has created a fanatical interest in the man and his times. Numerous books and competing histories vie for the definitive Blackbeard story: Was he born in the colonies […]
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OPS Receives Grant for Island Inn Stabilization
The Ocracoke Preservation Society has received a $15,000 grant from The Outer Banks Community Foundation to stabilize the Odd Fellow Lodge section of the Island Inn. That original building is all that remains after the nonprofit demolished the two wings recently as part of the OPS’s plan to save the property for community purposes. Stabilization […]
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Ocracoke to the Rescue
September 17, 2018 | Ocracoke Island Features | By: Connie Leinbach | From The: Ocracoke Observer
Ocracoke Island deployed its own Hurricane Florence aid effort this morning when three boats laden with goods departed from Ocracoke for Cedar Island, which has been cut off by Hurricane Florence. “From Stacy to here, they are cut off,” said Noel Goodwin, who with several other Ocracoke islanders Monday morning loaded three personal skiffs with […]
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Festival Celebrates All Things Figs
Ocracoke resident Rita Hahn was shocked when her and her husband, Don’s, fig cakes won top traditional cake honors Saturday in the Fig Cake Bake-off during the Fifth Annual Ocracoke Fig Festival. Traditional Fig Cake Traditional Ocracoke fig cakes submitted to the contest must be made only with figs or fig preserves, flour, sugar, eggs […]
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Anglers Land More Fish This Year in the Ocracoke Island Surf Fishing Tournament …WITH SLIDE SHOW
May 8, 2018 | Fishing | By: Connie Leinbach
CLICK HERE TO VIEW SLIDE SHOW